Throughout the last decade, Barcelona has been one of the teams considered among the elite in the world.

But over the last few seasons, the team seemingly fell from its perch atop the world rankings and became more of a questionable side. The ineffectiveness of its intense passing and pressing system came under scrutiny and many expected that the team would need a greater evolution to regain its stature as the world's best.

But the opening game of the 2014-15 season seemed to show that Barcelona has a lot to offer.

Here are some takeaways from the team's 3-0 win over Elche:

Messi Back in Fine Form

By his own standards, Messi had a "poor" 2013-14. He scored less than 50 goals in the entire year and rarely looked like the untouchable superstar of years past. His World Cup campaign did little to quell the criticism.

But his performance against Elche certainly did.

He scored two goals and looked completely invisible throughout. His touch on the second goal, in which he outdid the entire Elche backline before delivering a ridiculous finish, was unbelievable. His passing in the final third was thrilling to behold. He finished the night with 84 percent passing success -- which is around his career average, according to WhoScored.com.

Passing and Pressing at Its Finest

If there were any complaints about tiki taka over the last few years, it was that the passing lacked intensity and momentum and the pressing was too passive.

In the first game, these criticisms were impossible to use against Blaugrana. The passing was deliberate and precise. Every player on defense and in the midfield was completing over 90 percent of their passes. The catalyst in Luis Enrique's side seems to be Sergio Busquets, who completed 96 percent of his passes. Ivan Rakitic had 130 touches and completed 93 percent of his passes. He provided an assist and looked decisive for his club.

The team also seemed to sit back a bit and did not hold as high a line at times. It almost seemed as if Barcelona were inviting Elche to come out of their defensive shell and attack Barcelona in the midfield. This allowed for a more direct approach and hinted at versatility in attack.

A word of warning is wise: Los Cules did have similar intensity on the attack at the start of the 2013-14 season under Gerardo Martino before eventually lapsing into the mundane passivity of earlier years. It will be interesting to see how the team holds up over the long run.

Munir Is a Stud

Youngster Munid El Haddadi enjoyed a tremendous preseason and picked up where he left off in the opening game. He had two shots on goal and scored his first of the season. He was unlucky not to have more goals, but looks to be a breakout star in 2014-15.

His technique and speed are peerless and he might actually make Luis Suarez and Neymar fight for their starting spots. It will be interesting to see how the youngster adapts to his new club and how much time he gets.

Defense Better but Still Needs Work

Sergio Busquets' ill-advised mistake that led to Javier Mascherano's red card is something that is rare from the Spaniard. But it speaks to the team's continued vulnerability on defense. Mascherano is clearly not an ideal defender, but he did a solid job stepping in for Thomas Vermaelen and Gerard Pique. But this also speaks to the lack of depth at the back. Without Vermaelen or Pique, Enrique felt that Mascherano was still a better option that Marc Bartra. The Argentinean is not ideal as a center back and has not prospered in that position over the last few years. Bartra had a decent game, but is clearly not an elite defender yet.

On the flipside, Jeremy Mathieu made a solid debut without ever making a glaring mistake for Los Cules.

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